The Neurology Lounge

In this episode, I am joined by Franziska Thomas to explore her almost life-long history of experiencing epilepsy. She traces the onset of her epilepsy and the daily seizures she experiences since her first seizure in 1992, when she said her whole world literally turned upside down.

Franziska describes 'Fits and Starts' as a story, not just of her fits, but also of injuries and of memory loss. She also sees the book as a compelling personal description of living with epilepsy, an illness she said is shrouded in secrecy and antiquated myths. She also intended it to be a memoir which is set inside the wider story of epilepsy and society.

Franziska describes a vivid picture of how her illness has influenced her career choices and continues to define her daily life. We also discuss her depiction of epilepsy as a messy illness, and her concepts and experience of stigma. Laden with self-deprecating humour, it is also a story of her own coming of age as someone with epilepsy, a teacher, and ultimately, a mother.

Franziska Thomas has previously worked as a journalist and history teacher, and she is currently working as an author and GCSE English tutor. She lives in London with her husband Tim, their children Oskar and Kurt, two misbehaving Maine Coones, and a Labrador called Magnus who never stops eating.

In this short episode, I count down 10 neurological occupational risks. The podcast explores how the activities involved, and the exposures associated with the jobs, can threaten the nervous system.

In this episode I discuss the history of epilepsy and of its treatments with neurologist Ian Bone, Consultant Neurologist at the Institute of Neurological Sciences Glasgow between 1978 and 2006, and Honorary Professor of Clinical Neurology at the University of Glasgow. Since retiring, Ian has worked on behalf of the Medical Research Council, and held lecturing posts overseas in India, Nepal and the West Bank.

Ian traces the history of our understanding of epilepsy from Hippocratic and Galenic times, through the medieval and renaissance periods, to Victorian and modern times. He illustrates his arguments with vivid anecdotes of witchcraft, demonic possession, and exorcism, and with references to such historical figures as Pope Innocent VIII, and physicians such as William Gowers and John Hughlings Jackson.

Our discussion also covers the history of epilepsy in the arts and music, and we explore the trauma and stigma that is associated with the disease.

Ian also provides invaluable perspectives as a neurologist whose son has epilepsy.

Ian Bone is Trustee of several Charities, and a Board Member of the Hidden Truths Project, a California based charity that champions artists with epilepsy. Ian was also Chair of Clinical Governance at the William Quarrier Scottish Epilepsy Centre, and a member of The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow Library and Heritage committee.

Ian’s recent publications have been on William MacEwen and the advent of epilepsy surgery; animal experimentation and the anti-vivisection movement in Victorian Britain; and the importance of history taking and examination before requesting neurological investigations.

In this episode, I use illustrative patient memoirs to discuss its diverse and deceptive causes and manifestations.

I also use historical stories, such as that of composer George Gershwin, to illustrate the challenge of making a diagnosis of seizures.

I also explore the manifold mimics of epilepsy, particularly exploring how fainting can easily be mistaken for an epileptic event.

The podcast also goes back in history to trace the first documentation of epilepsy and the revolutionary impact of English neurologist John Hughlings Jackson in our understanding of the disease, and the work of William Gowers in elucidating the nature of epileptic auras.

I also review the complications of epilepsy such as sudden death in epilepsy, SUDEP.

In this podcast, I am joined by Matthew Cobb, author of the fascinating book The idea of the Brain, to discuss the different concepts of the brain that have emerged over the centuries.

Matthew Cobb is Professor of Zoology at the University of Manchester where he studies the neurobiology of the sense of smell.

Matthew Cobb explores current and historical metaphors of the brain, from the machine and the mill to the battery and the computer.

Matthew also flavours his history with gripping anecdotes, from Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice to Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. And he draws lessons from such giants of science, from Galvani and Volta to Steno and Francis Crick.

Matthew is also a non-professional historian, having written several other books, most recently Life’s Greatest Secret: The Race to Crack the Genetic Code, and The Genetic Age: Our Perilous Quest to Edit Life.

He is currently completing a biography of Francis Crick.

In this episode, I talk to Susan Mattern, expert in ancient Mediterranean history at the University of Georgia, and author of the authoritative biography of Galen titled Prince of Medicine.

We explore the life, ideas and legacy of Galen, perhaps the most influential physician in the history of medicine, and how his teachings dominated the profession for centuries.

The discussion also touched on his predecessor, Hippocrates, and his successor, Andreas Vesalius - the anatomist who finally dethroned many of his teachings.

Susan Mattern is also the author of several other books, most recently The Slow Moon Climbs: The Science, History, and Meaning of Menopause, and she is a series editor for the ancient history series, Liverpool Studies in Ancient History.

Her current interests are transcultural psychiatry, the origins and history of property, and the history of small-scale egalitarian societies.

In this second episode on the history of neurology, I go back in time to explore how the founders of medicine, from Herophilus and Aristotle to Hippocrates and Galen, laid the foundations of neurology.

The journey takes us from ancient Egypt to Greece, back to Egypt, and then to Belgium.

And the running theme is how the understanding of the brain and its diseases evolved in unexpected ways as the means of studying it changed over time.

The podcast traces the early views of the brain, describing it depictions in such texts as the Edwin Smith papyrus, and later in De Humani Corporis Fabrica, the masterpiece written by the remarkable anatomist Andreas Vesalius.

In this podcast I count down 10 vague symptoms that are easily overlooked, but are really seizures

In this episode, I am joined by Antoinette Stubbs to discuss her memoir Braveheart. The release of this podcast today celebrates Antoinette starting a new role n the British national Health Service today! In Braveheart,

Annie narrated the experience of her son, Calum, who suffered with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.

Our discussion highlights the early symptoms of the disease, the delay in diagnosis, and the burden of care.

Just as the podcast highlights the grief that came with losing Calum, it also brings out the positivity that enables Annie to say that there is still much beauty in the world.

In this podcast, I explore the history of our understanding of the different disorders that constitute muscular dystrophy.

I also use patient memoirs to illustrate the different types of muscular dystrophy, from Duchenne and Becker to limb girdle and myotonic dystrophy.

I trace the history of the understanding of the disorder with reference to such physicians as Sir Charles Bell, Duchenne de Boulogne and Edward Meryon.

I also discuss the characteristic features of the different muscular dystrophies such as the Gower's sign and myotonia.

The podcast also provides elements of the management of the disorder, especially the monitoring regimen for Duchenne muscular dystrophy.

I also reviewed the exciting developments in the genetic treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy.